Program device



E. F. GEIG ER PROGRAM DEVICE Feb. 10, 1931.

. 1923 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct.

Feb. 10, 1931. 5F, GE|GER 1,791,927

PROGRAM DEVICE Filed Oct. 30, 923 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 llllll II IIPatented. Feb. 10, 1931 um'rao srA'rns PATENT OFFICE EDWARD I. GEIGER,OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOB- TO INTERNATIONAL TIME RE- COBDINGCOHI'ANY OF NEW YORK, OF ENDIOOTT, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION 01' 1 NEWYORK PROGRAM DEVICE Application filed October 30, 1923. Serial No.671,686.

This invention relates to program devices or more specifically totime-controlled mechanism adapted to control signals at certain timesduring the. day.

Such devices may be used wherever definite programs are followedas, forinstance, in schools, factories, stores, oflices, etc.

This device may be set to cause the sounding of a gongor the productionof any other suitable form of signal at any desired time by attachingelectric circuit-controlling tabs to a time-controlled rotating disc.The disc may bear time graduations in suitable increments forconvenience in locating the tabs. Where a specific program requires theringing of a bell at eight specific times during a given space of time,eight tabs will be placed on the disc at points corresponding to thetimes that the bell is to ring. As the disc rotates the tabs engage andactuate electric contacts at the proper moments, thus closing operatingcircuits and causing the signals to operate.

Several programs may be controlled by the same device by providing aseparate disc for each program, each disc controlling the ringing of itsbell or group of bells.

One object of the invention is to provide means whereby several discs,each representing a different program may interchangeably control thesame signal or group of signals. Thus, when a class room is being usedfor morning, afternoon and evening sessions under three separateprograms, the discs representing these three programs may at the propertimes, be brought into control of the bell used for program control inthat room. And, should the same room be used for a different program onSaturdays or Sundays, a different disc, brought into operation by thecalendar device on such days, will control the bell.

The arrangement of the parts is such that a circuit operating a givensignal may be associated with any desired number of discs. For instance,a device having eight discs may control two circuits; three of the discsbeing used to control one circuit and five to con rol the And any o hediscs nnected with one of the circuits may be shifted to the othercircuit. 7

Another object is to reduce the number of electric contacters throughwhich the current flows.

Another object is to completely insulate the main body of the machinefrom the current being used. Y

Other objects will appear in the description which follows:

Referring to the drawings wherein I have shown what I now consider to bethe pre ferred form of my invention:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the device.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail partly in sec tion of aportion of themechanism shown in Fig. 1, and shows the electric contact-actuatingelements.

Fig. 3 is a sectional detail taken on lin 3 -3 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a sectional detail taken on line H of Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a detail of one of the time control discs.

In the drawings, 1 represents a supporting frame or casing for themechanism, 2 represents a driving shaft which may be actuated by clockmechanism or any time-controlled element. The shaft is supported inbracket 3 and carries fixed on its lower end a gear 4 meshing with agear 5 on a shaft 6. Gears 4, 5 may be of the bevel type or they may beordinary clock gears wherein the teeth are so narrow that they will meshand operate when mounted in different planes as shown here. The shaft 6carries a gear 7 meshing with a large gear 8 rotatable about an axis 9.On the same spindle with gear 8 are a plurality of discs 10 and a dial11. The gear, discs and dial are secured in spaced relation, as in Fig.3, by suitable bolts 12 and spacing washers 13. The rotation of gear 8will thus cause the discs 10 and dial 11 to rotate also.

The discs are notched, as at 14, at equally spaced intervals about theirentire circumferences to receive plugs 15 while the dial may be marked,as at 16, corresponding to the notches 14 to indicate their respectivevalues in terms of time. The plugs are adapted,

as the discs rotate, to engage projections 17 on the lower leaves 18 ofelectric contacts 19, to close the contacts. The upper one of contacts19, however, is normally sulliciently raised above the lower one toavoid closure when the lower one is raised. To permit closure, then, theupper contact must be slightly depressed. To accomplish this I haveprovided a second series of notched discs 20 adapted to receiveplugs:21. to engage projections 21o on the upper leaves 23 of the contacts.The projections 17 and 21a are insulated from leaves 18 and 23. Gr. thesame shaft 24 with the discs 20 are a ratchet wheel 25 and a dial 26;the dial being marked to indicate the relation of the notches to thetime of day and the day of the week." Cooperating with the ratchet is apav-rl 27 pivoted lever 28 oscillating about a fixed axis'29. The pawlis pulled downwardly and against the ratchet by a spring 30. The lever28 has a projection 31 riding on a cam 32 which is fixed to and rotateswith the gear 8 and discslO. As cam 82 turns counter-clockwise the pawlis slowly lifted, and once each revolution of the cam. the lever dropsat 33 and spring 30 turns ratchet 25 one notch and with it the discs 20.

The operation is as follows: I

The drive shaft 2 rotates the discs 10 counter-clockwise once every sixhours. There being sixty notches for each hour, one of these notcheswill pass projections 1'? each minute. Plugs 15 will be placed on thediscs in as many places as it is desired to ring the bell during the sixhours represented by particular disc, and in positions correspond ing tothe times at which the bell is to ring. If the program represented bythe disc in question commences between the hours of SlX and twelve eachmorning or the mornin or" certain days, then a plug 21 will be placed onv the disc 20 directly above and corresponding to the oisc 10 inquestion at the point representing six ocloclr in the morning of thedays for whichthe program is operative. There are tourofthese notchesfor each day, one of which reaches the position acent projection 21a atthe beginning of each quarter of the day. Thus. plugs placed in thesecond notch for certain days will engage projection 21a at sir; oclockin the morning of those days and depress the upper one of contacts 19'tooperative position. Thereafter, during the next six hours, whenever thelower contact is raised by a plug on the disc 10, it will engage theupper contact and close a circuit through the program bell and cause itto ring. The contact leaves 18, 23 are connected to binding posts 35 bymeans of flexible conductors of such a design that they can be easilydisconnected from one post and connected to another. This will permitthe leaves to be arranged in any combinations of groups as may bedesired. The posts 35 may in turn, be connected to the signals asdesired.

At the end of six hours, that is at twelve ocloclr, the discs 20 willadvance a notch and release the upper contact so that the disc 10 whichhas been controlling will have no further efiect.

If the same class l'OOlIlS EUG being used for morning, afternoon evthree of discs 10 maybe plugged up for the hree prop"? .ms respectivelyand the corresponding discs 20 plugged to depress their upper contacts19 at siir oclock in the morning, twelve oclock noon and six ocloclr inthe evening respectively. These three discs 10 will then, ofcourse, beconnected to the same program bells.

The connections may be made in the following manner: The lower contactarm 18 is connected through its binding post to one side of the signaldevice The upper con tact arm 23 is connected through its binding post3: to the other side of the signal device; a suitab e source 37 ofcurrent being, of course, included in the circuit. here the program orprograms require the use ofmore than one set of discs 10 and 20, theadditional discs may be connected by connecting the proper contact arms18., 23 to the same binding posts t the signal device 36 is connected.

00 L0 which Loose connections 38 may be provided for this purpose. Itis, of course, understood that several signal devices 36 may beconnected to the same bindin posts 35 to operate simultaneously.

If a program commences at 9 oclock in the morning and ends at 3 ocloclrin the afternoon, one disc becoming operative at six in the morning mabe used for the nine to twelve period and another becoming operative atnoon'may be used for the'twelve to three period.

li here a program commences at six oclock in the morning and runs to tenoclock at night, as is frequently the case in boarding schools, threediscs will be used; one covering the period from six a. m. to twelvenoon, an-' other from twelve noon to six 13. m. and the third from sinp. m. to twelve at night. On the other hand, some boarding schoolscommence their programs at five in the morning, especially during thesummer months, and run to ten at night. Heretofore with devices of thisnature it has been necessary to use four discs for such a program; theextra disc coming into operation twelve oclock at night to operate forthe period from live to siXin the morning. I have provided a novelarrangement whereby such a program may be maintained with the use ofonly three discs. To this end, the cam 32 which is fixed with respect tothe discs 10 and which controls the operation of the discs 20 to depressthe upper contact arms 23 at six oclock and twelve oclock, may beadjusted to depress said arms other hours. Thus, said cam is secured tothe gear 8 by'set screws 32a. Six

sessions,

such screws are shown. -By removing the screws and turning the cam inthe proper direction one sixth of its circumference and reinserting thescrews, the cam will now cause depression of the upper contact arms 22an hour earlier. Now, if a plug 15 be lodged in the five oclock notch ofthe morning disc, when the lower contact arm 18 is raised by such plug,contacts 19 will be closed and the signal operated. The discs will nowbe operative from five oclock to eleven oclock and from eleven to five.

It will be understood of course that by providing a sufficient numberofholes for the set screws 32a the cam 33 may be adjusted in smallersteps, so as to bring the program discs into operation a half or quarterof an hour before six or twelve oclock. Also, by providing an elongatedhole or slot for the set screw 32a to engage in, the cam 33 may be soadjusted as to bring the program discs into control a half minute beforeor after the hour. Thus, if a program commences at precisely six oclock,the discs can be rendered operative to control slightly before thatmoment. Or, where a program ends at precisely six oclock, the disc maybe retained in operative control until a fraction of a minute after thatmovement.

With my construction it will be seen thatv introducing the currentthrough contact arms 18 and returning it through arms 22; the arms beinginsulated from the other parts of the machine, and the projections 17and 21a carried by said arms being insulated therefrom.

My invention also reduces the number of points where the circuit isclosed to one i. e., at contacts 19. In other devices of this characterit has been necessary to close the circuit at severalplaces.

Having described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure byLetters Patent 1s:

1. In a program device, a signal control member, a plurality of timecontrolled means for actuating said member, and means controlled by onetime controlled means for operating the other time controlled means,sald means being adjustable relative to the first mentioned timecontrolled means to determine the time at which the second timecontrolled means shall operate.

2. In a program device wherein one time controlled means is actuatedperiodically by another to operate conj ointly a signal controllingdevice, means for variably adjusting the time controlled meansrelatively to each other to vary the time of actuation of the firstnamed time controlled means from the other and a clock driven member fordriving the latter time controlled means.

3. In a program device provided with a signal control member and a pairof time controlled elements; a cam for driving one of saidtime-controlled elements and means for mounting said cam on the othertime controlled element whereby the latter element controls the drivingof the first mentioned time controlled element, said mounting meansbeing adapted to mount said cam on the said latter element in differentpositions to provide a gross adjustment of the cam relative to the saidlatter element and said mounting means being adapted to permit a preciseadjustment of the cam relative to the said latter element while the camis in any one of said difierent positions on said latter element.

. 4. In a program device including a plurality of elements adapted toact conjointly to control a signal, separate time controlled means forcontrolling each of said elements,

means for actuatingv one of said separate means from the other, meansfor grossly adj usting the time of such actuation, said means permittingminute adjustment of the time of such actuation after the grossadjustment has been made.

In testimony whereof I hereto afllx my signature.

EDWARD F. GEIGER.

